


her heart is older now

by dryswallow



Category: Persona 3
Genre: F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Canon, Survivor Guilt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-18
Updated: 2014-10-18
Packaged: 2018-02-21 16:17:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2474495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dryswallow/pseuds/dryswallow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They chose to keep living. (Mitsuru and Yukari fit their lives together in the aftermath.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	her heart is older now

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Miss_Prince](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Miss_Prince/gifts).



> For Miss Prince - from your prompt I took the parts about post-canon and Yukari and Mitsuru fitting their lives together and hurt/comfort, and I had a lot of fun with them. I hope you like this. :)
> 
> This only relies on the original P3FES canon, since I haven't played P3P or any of the P4 games including P3 characters.

The view from Mitsuru's apartment at night is surprisingly beautiful. It could just be the change of perspective; Yukari's been all over the city, and from street level it's nothing much to look at, but from so high up, and with so many lights bleeding into one another, the city has become something different. Or maybe Yukari is more grateful for it now than she used to be. She can see Moonlight Bridge, Paulownia Mall, and just beyond that, Gekkoukan High. It's a few hours too early for the Dark Hour, but Yukari still feels her eyes being drawn to the empty space above the school where Tartarus would have been, rising up into the darkness like the nightmare it was. But wasn't anymore, she reminds herself. She pulls her eyes away, looking at the street below instead.

A lot happened to her in this city.

A lot is still happening to her in this city.

The door to the balcony slides open behind her. When Yukari looks back over her shoulder, Mitsuru is there, her hands full with two steaming mugs of cocoa.

“Here you are,” she says, holding one of the mugs out in offering. “Are you looking at anything in particular?”

“No. Just everything, I guess. Your view is amazing,” Yukari says. “So much nicer than my dorm room.”

“Is it that bad?”

“No, but the first thing I want to see when I wake up is not school. I get enough of that as is.”

“Fair enough,” Mitsuru says, and settles into place beside Yukari. “I'm glad you made it tonight.”

“Yeah, well, I'm not the kind of girl who stands people up for dates,” Yukari says. 

Mitsuru's composed smile cracks open with embarrassed pleasure. She still reacts that way sometimes, even months after their first date some weeks after Mitsuru's graduation. Mitsuru had sworn to stand at Yukari's side, and during that day they spent trapped inside their dorm with time repeating endlessly, she had more than proved that she meant it. Confessions came easily from both of them soon after that; after all they had been through, it felt like a small but worthwhile risk to take.

“Did you have anything else planned for us tonight?” Yukari asks.

Mitsuru shakes her head. “Unfortunately, no. I've been a bit of a lazy hostess this time.”

“You are the farthest from lazy that anyone can get, seriously,” Yukari says. “But if you've got nothing in mind, then after we finish our drinks what do you think about sharing a bath?”

“I think,” Mitsuru says, her smile growing even wider, “That I would like that very much.”

-

Everything in Mitsuru's apartment is just as nice as the view from her balcony. There's her queen-sized bed, her walk-in closet, her leather couch, and the bathtub – Yukari's favourite was definitely the bathtub. After so long spent washing herself in shared dorm showers, a spacious bathtub was a dream come true, and she took full advantage of it whenever she could, either alone, or sharing with Mitsuru. With such a big tub, it wasn't hard to fit both of them in if they sat facing each other, one of them on either end.

Tonight, Yukari lets the water flow especially hot, so hot that it almost hurts to lower herself into the tub. The heat quickly leeches into her body, causing sweat to prickle at her brow and upper lip. It's relaxing for sure, but she can still feel a lingering restlessness in her body.

Yukari is left on her own to soak for only a few minutes before Mitsuru appears in the doorway with only a towel wrapped around her. Her hair is pulled back into a messy bun at the top of her head.

“Come on in,” Yukari says. “This time we can have a bath with no idiotic boys around to spy on us.”

“Thank goodness for that,” Mitsuru says. She leaves her towel hanging by the door and steps carefully into the tub. The water level rises slightly with her presence, covering more of Yukari's chest.

“You seem a bit tired tonight,” Yukari says.

“Yes, this week was particularly busy,” Mitsuru explains.

“School?”

“School and work – it feels like once I finish one thing, I have another one waiting for me.

“But what about you. Do you have any plans yet, for after you graduate?” Mitsuru asks.

Yukari almost laughs. “Oh jeez, I probably should by now, huh? I've been thinking about it but I'm still not sure. I think a lot of my friends made up their minds last year, but I didn't really have time for that, what with... well, everything.”

“That's understandable,” Mitsuru says. She half looks as though she's about to apologize for asking in the first place, and Yukari feels her heart jolt in fear. An apology isn't what she wants to hear right now.

“It's not your fault at all, but to be honest, I think I'm a bit jealous of you.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Not that I think it was easy for you, but your path was pretty clear. Or at least you had options given to you. My path isn't clear at all – I don't know what my direction should be anymore. Things are okay, but I don't really know where I'm going now. I mean, there were a few points during the last year when I didn't know if I'd even be alive at this point. And I am –  _we_  are, but not all of us made it.”

Yukari looks down at the water so she doesn't have to look up and meet Mitsuru's gaze. This sort of thing always happens – she keeps her thoughts in for long enough that when she finally does let them out, they spray like shrapnel.

“After we settled everything in the Abyss of Time, I thought I managed to accept what had happened. Guess it wasn't that simple, huh.”

“If you feel guilty,” Mitsuru tells her, “I can assure you that you're not the only one.”

Guilt is one word for it.

“Again, it's understandable. And it's something we can work on.”

“We?”

“You'll never be alone in this,” Mitsuru says. “I told you I would stay by your side, and I have no intention of going back on my word. And aside from me, you have your friends, whom I doubt would let you go so easily.”

“Thanks,” Yukari says. “And I appreciate it. I think I'm pretty used to it though.”

“Being alone?”

“Yeah.”

“It's a hard habit to break.” The water sloshes as Mitsuru adjusts her position, threatening to spill over the edges of the tub. Beneath the water, their bodies distort into rippling masses.

“Come over here,” Mitsuru says.

Yukari glances over at Mitsuru's end of the tub, apprehensive.

“Do you think we'll fit?”

“You're the one who said she thought we could fit at least five people in here. I think it's possible.”

They have to shuffle their bodies around to make everything fit, but eventually they make it work. Yukari ends up seated between Mitsuru's thighs with her head resting on Mitsuru's shoulder and Mitsuru's arms wrapped around her middle. Mitsuru places a kiss against the crown of Yukari's head before she settles back against the tub. It's not comfortable enough that they'll be able to stay here for long, but for now, it's where Yukari want to be. She can feel the press of Mitsuru's skin against her own, all the places their bodies meet, a feeling she has come to crave.

“We chose to keep living, to fight to keep what we had,” Mitsuru says softly. “And we won that battle, together. I try to always remember that. Being with you helps me remember that.”

The water is getting cooler, but not cool enough to be unpleasant. Yukari blinks once, twice, and closes her eyes.

Not all of her choices have been the right ones. She's not selfish enough that she can't see that. But her heart is older now, and it's learning to be more forgiving – more forgiving of others as well as herself.

A lot has happened to her in this city. A lot of good things, and a lot of horrible things. It's right there in front of her whenever she goes to class, or takes a walk over to the mall, or she sees Aigis smiling and laughing. A lot has happened to her – a lot has happened to all of them in this city. And their choice to fight their way through to the other side of it has been more than worthwhile.


End file.
